New Chicago School Board Approves Brizard As CEO

CHICAGO (CBS) — Members of the Chicago Public School Board Wednesday approved the appointment of Jean-Claude Brizard as the new CEO.

Without discussion or a roll call vote, the members voted unanimously to approve the appointment, Newsradio 780’s Lisa Fielding reports.

Brizard is the former superintendent of the public school system in Rochester, N.Y. He resigned from that post on May13 and has been working for Chicago Public School on a pro-bono basis since May 17, handling transition matters.

Brizard will be paid $250,000 but details of his new contract are still being worked out. The salary is $20,000 more than former CEO Ron Huberman was paid.

Meantime, outgoing school board members took the time at the end of their final meeting to say goodbye and thank Mayor Richard Daley for their appointments, some having served up to 16 years on the board.

“I am grateful to Mayor Daley for asking me to complete this cycle. I’m also grateful to Mayor Emanuel and what he’s decided to do and that’s to continue to push education,” said outgoing School Board President Mary Robinson Lowry.

Roxanne Ward says she’ll continue to be involved in the improvement of public education.

“We’re stepping down but we’re not stepping aside. I can speak for this whole board, we are committed as ever to education reform in the city of Chicago and CPS students,” said Ward.

Some got choked up when talking about former School Board President Michael Scott, who committed suicide last year.

“We lost Michael, he was a best friend, I’ll always remember him for his leadership, his commitment, his love for this city and the students of the Chicago Public School system,” said outgoing board member Alberto Carrero, Jr.

The new board will likely be seated at the next school board meeting on June 22.